NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to hear the objection of a petitioner that Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi was appearing for a private client while hearing the plea of the Kerala Bar Hotels Association.
A Bench of Justice Vikramjit Sen and Justice Shiv Kirti Singh hearing the case said ‘’the Attorney-General is the law officer of the government. If there is any action that needs to be taken, the government will take the action. We are told that government has given the permission...taking action on law Officers is not in our province.”
The court’s observation came when a lawyer objected to the AG taking up the brief of a private client. Rohatgi said he has been permitted by the Central Government to appear in the case. During the hearing, the AG appearing for four-star bar owners said: “If you want to stop liquor, cut everybody’s necks, including five-stars and even government, not just ours. Four and five-star bars are same class. Bar licence is a must for all.” Senior advocate C A Sundaram said ‘’let’s break all the glasses in Kerala to stop liquor abuse.”
The apex court is hearing appeals challenging a judgment of the Kerala High Court that had upheld the state’s decision to close down most of the bars. The court had on Thursday observed it would be suitable to implement alcohol prohibition in a phased manner in Kerala. The association had moved the apex court against a Kerala High Court order which upheld the state government’s liquor policy.